It is difficult to determine the number of Americans held in seclusion within U.S. jails and prisons due to incomplete and poor data collection. A first-of its-kind analysis aims to become a benchmark to track the practice as states, cities and the federal government consider how to limit it.
According to a report published Tuesday, based on government data, approximately 122,840 inmates in federal, state, and local adult prisons, as well as federal and county jails, were kept in restricted housing, also known informally by the term solitary confinement, for at least 22 hours on any given day during mid-2019.
This is about 6% the population of all U.S. jails and prisons at that time.
The report, prepared by Solitary Watch (a nonprofit watchdog organization) and Unlock the Box (an advocacy campaign), relies on figures reported by states and the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the federal government, as well as a questionnaire sent to all U.S. prisons, from the Vera Institute of Justice.
Democratic Rep. Cori bush, whose state of Missouri had nearly 12% of the total prison population living in restrictive housing within a single 24-hour period, called this report a “catastrophe.”
She said that imposing solitary on a single person was a moral disgrace on the nation. “To inflict it on hundreds and thousands of people, disproportionately Blacks, Browns and Indigenous people is a catastrophe.” As public officials, we must act immediately to stop the widespread torture.
Solitary Watch Director Jean Casella said that this figure represents more than one in twenty incarcerated persons in the United States. She added that the report was incomplete because not all state prisons provide data to the federal government, and jails in general are not required to record incidents. The report does not cover solitary confinement practices in Immigration Detention Centers and Youth Facilities where data are also limited.
Casella explained that “until a better system can be developed and mandated, we will have this snapshot.” Since there is no penalty for failing to report to [the Bureau of Justice Statistics], it’s a blessing that so many states are doing this at all.
The report states that only West Virginia did not supply numbers to the Bureau or make them public. The West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation didn’t respond to an inquiry for comment.
Nevada had the highest percentage of prisoners in solitary confinement, at almost 26%.
In 2019, the Nevada Department of Corrections announced that it would be looking for alternatives to isolating and segregating inmates. This was after acknowledging that a Vera Institute Report found that people were being held longer than necessary while they waited to get a bed in a general population. Mental health needs of inmates also weren’t being addressed.
The department has not responded to requests for comments immediately.
Delaware was the only report state to claim that there were no instances of solitary in their prisons.
A spokesman for the Delaware Department of Corrections attributed this to the 2019 overhaul of the state’s restrictive housing policy. He also said that the opening of the specialized unit in the state’s biggest prison treats mentally ill inmates, who would normally be held in maximum-security housing.
Delaware’s disciplinary policy now requires that prisoners are not kept in solitary more than 15 consecutive days. They must also get at least 10 hours of recreation per week.
Correctional officers and prison staff have argued that isolating prisoners can be an effective tool to prevent serious harm. Studies have shown that it can also increase the risk of suicide and self-harm.
The new report is different from previous studies in that it does not only focus on inmates held in solitary for 15 days or longer, but also includes inmates who spent 22 hours or longer in a cell.
Casella hopes that the report will encourage correctional officials to only confine inmates to very limited situations such as deescalating violent situations and for short periods of time, not days.
The number of people in solitary confinement is on the rise
In some places, efforts are still ongoing.
Nevada state lawmakers are considering a Bill to address the use of isolation so that “it may only be used in a last-resort, in the most restrictive manner and for as short a time period safely possible.”
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has been tasked to create new guidelines for segregated containment following Gov. Gavin Newsom , a Democrat , vetoed a law last year that would have ended solitary confinement indefinitely due to safety concerns.
New York City’s efforts to ban solitary in jails have been stymied by correction officials, despite the City Council possessing a supermajority that can override any veto. The city settled a lawsuit filed last month by pretrial detainees claiming they were held in conditions similar to solitary.
In the federal government, President Joe Biden campaigned on a promise to largely eliminate solitary confinement. He also issued a executive order a few years ago aiming at overhauling the practice. However, an NBC News Analysis revealed that its use increased in the following months.
In a Justice Department report from February, it was stated that a taskforce of senior federal prison officials were examining the use and abuse of restrictive housing. They also “actively investigated” the reasons why the number prisoners held in restricted housing had risen over the past few years.
A Justice Department spokesperson said that the federal Bureau of Prisons “is taking the necessary short- and long-term measures to thoughtfully address the issue. We are confident in the ability of [BOP director Colette Peters] to effectively meet President’s executive order’s goals.”
Casella says that the federal government could improve its data collection processes at the very least.
She said that “prisons and jails may be the most resistant government institutions to change we have here in this country, so bringing about any sort of change will take a long time.”
